Improvement in machines for rubbing types



Y 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. LDUNCAN.,

-' Rotaryv Type Rubber."

` Patented Jah. I25, 1848.

mab moy UNITED STATES JAMES L. DUNCAN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHINES FOR RUBBING TYPES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 5,120, dated January25, 1848.

Be it known that I, JAMES L. DUNCAN, of the city, county, and State ofNew York, have invented a new and useful machine for taking off theprojections and roughnesses from the body of type and cleaning them,called Duncans rotary type-rubber;7 and l do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and

' exact description ofthe construction and operation of the same,reference being had to the annexed drawings, making part of thisspecication.

Figure l is a perspective view of the front side and top of the machine.Fig. 2 is a view of the left side of the machine. Fig 3 is a side viewof the stop, (drawn to fullsize.) Fig. 4 is a back view of the same.Fig. 5 is aside view of the gate at the end `of Ythe gutter next thecutters. Fig. 6 is a back view of the same. Fig. 7 is a top view of theunder cutter detached from the plate. Fig. 8 is an edge view of thesame; Fig. 9 is a view of the upper cutter as arranged in the box. Fig.l0 is a side view of the same and of the under cutter. Fig. 1l is a topview of the feed-plate, seg' mental feed-gutters, cutter-box, radialfingers, stops, gates, and guards; Fig. 12, a perspective view of theguard O at the entrance of the gutter. Fig. 18 is a perspective view ofthe guard d2. Fig. 14 is a plan of the guard q at the end of the gutternext the cutters.

Similar letters in the several figures refer to corresponding parts.

My machine consists of a square or oblong bed-plate, VA, of cast-iron,about two feet square and half an inch thick, having four legs, uponwhichit is supported at a suitable height for the operator to attend themachine conveniently. This bed-plate contains a circular opening toadmit the axle of a lcircular concave disk called the revolvingfeeding-plate,7 and an opening to admit the axle of a circular rim, towhich radial lingers for forcing the type between the cutters arealixed, and an opening to admit the discharging trough or spout, andperforated with various apertures to admit setscrews for adjusting thebottom n cutter to the face of the feeding-plate and for admittingvarious screw-bolts that confine certain knees, flanges, and suspendedframes or hangers containing the boxes of the axles and other partshereinafter to be described.

B is the bottom cutter, attached tothe bed- -plate by two screws, s s,or other means. This cutter is a cast-steel segment-block, dressed orfluted on the upper face in parallel furrows, forming cuttingedgesruiming at an angle of about fifty degrees with its convex and concavesides. The parallel furrows are made with a file or by a plane in theform of the dress of a burr-stone of a grist-mill, showing liat bands ofabout one-third the width of the channels. About one-half of the face ofthe steel block is thus channeled or dressed for the purpose of cuttingoi the projections from the sides of the type and for preventing themgetting into the furrows by causing the type to pass over the furrowsobliquely, the smooth portion of the block serving as a'polisher orrubber to polish the sides ofthe type after being dressed, as abovestated.

The two screws s s, Figs. 2, 8, and l0, for confining the cutter B tothe plate A, have milled heads and pass up through the bedplate from theunder side thereof 'and screw in to the cutter, by which itis lowered ordrawn downward upon the points of the screws 10. The four screws 10 l010.10 are for the purpose of adjusting the face of the cutter so as tobe llevel with the face or upper edge of the concave disk orfeeding-plate. These screws also pass up through the bed-plate from theunder side thereof, turning in female screws therein and having theirpoints bearing against the under side ot' the cutter. The two confin-ling-screws s s, that pass up through the bedplate A and enter thecutter-block B, for holding the cutter down upon the points of theadjusting-screws 10, are placed between said adjusting screws 10, havingtheir shoulders turning against the under side of the plate A.

C is the top cutter. This cutter is made of cast-steel in the samemanner as the lower cutter, the furrows being filed in an obliquedirection across the steel block, so that when the furrowed face of theupper cutteris brought opposite and over the face of the lower cutterthe furrows or cutting-edges `will cross each other nearly at rightangles or at any suitable angle, and the upper cutter will be suspendedabove the lower cutter to a follower, Y, a distance above the lowercutter equal to the thickness to which the types are to be dressed,changeable at pleasure, the follower being suspended to the lower end ofa screw, X, ar ranged above it to suit any thickness of type to bedressed. The cutter C is suspended to the under side of the follower Yby means of two milled screws, tt. The face of the upper cutter (exceptthe mouth of it, which is made slightly flaring to admit the type toenter) is The screw X, before mentioned, that sns` pends the follower tothe gallows C C', is con-y nected with thehead ofthe follower by aswiveljoint, x, and turns in a female screw or nut, C, in the middle of thegallows C', having a milled head, by which it is turned to the right orleft for raising or lowering the follower, to which the cutter isaffixed. The follower has a perpendicular rib or tongue, y, on each ofits four sides, two of which press against corre sponding bearings, dd', on two of the sides of the box, and two are pressed against by thinplates or gibs t' t' by set-screws a a a a, passing through the sides ofthe box and pressing the said gibs against the tongues. The object ofusing these gib-plates and set-screws is for the purpose of obtaining asquare bearing on the opposite sides of Qthe follower for keeping thefollower always rm and steady and causing it to rise perpendicularly,which is necessary in order to retain the faces of the cutters parallel.The box D is fastened to the bed-plate by means of a right angledflange, b, and screws d. The gallows G is fastened to the box D by meansof flanges and screws e.

E is a horizontal cast-iron revolving circular plate carrying anyconvenient number of radial ngers N for forcing the type flatwisebetween the cutters for smoothing them, called the rotaryfinger-plate.77 This plate is cast with an axle, I, projecting down fromthe ccnter of the same and passing through the bedplate, reduced indiameter by turning or otherwise, forming a shoulder which is to turnupon the top of the hanging frame Z, fastened to the under side of thebed-plate A, said shaft I be ing kept in its proper bearing by suitablecaps or boxes, z, screwed to the sides of the hanging frame. Thehorizontal plane of the under side of the finger-plate must nearlycoincide with the horizontal planes of the lower cutter and. of theupper surface of the feed-plate, being a little above them in order toleave room for the proper adjustment of the fingers and not to come incontact with the feed-plate. The fingers N, for receiving and forcingthe type through between the cutters, are thin flat plates of cast-steelmade broad at one end, which is turned up at right angles and cut downin vertical parallel grooves from the top to near the base for thepurpose of allowing them to be raised or lowered over the shanks ofset-screws f, let into the periphery of the finger-plate E, in order toset the fingers so as to receive the type properly and pass with it inthe arc of a circle between the cutters without said fingers touchingthem, a clamp-plate, g. being placed between the heads of the screws fand the grooved or turned-up ends of the finger-platesthrough which theset-screws pass for the purpose of holding the fingers firmly in theirrequired positions without the danger of dropping or slipping down. Theedges of the fingers are notched or recessed at nfor the purpose ofadmitting the tails of the letters that project over the edges of thetype to lie therein securely, so as to protect them from injury bycoming in contact with the edges of the fingers, which would, if notrecessed, break the letter and bend the type in forcing them against thecutters. The upper surface of the finger-plate is reamed out and madehollow for the purpose of reducing its weight, as seen at E. Theperiphery of the fingerplate at the points where the vertical portionsof the iingers are screwed to it are filed off flat, so that thebacks ofthe fingers may have a-n even and ilat bearing, as seen more clearly inFig. l1.

A horizontal bevel-wheel, l?, is fixed on the vertical shaft I of thefinger plate below the bed-plate, into which is geared a bevelpinion, Q,on the driving-shaft V, on which there is a flywheel, W', for equalizingthe motion of the machinery.

IV is a crank 'handle inserted into the rim of the balance-wheel forturning the shaft V.

R is a spur-wheel, through the center of which the shaft I passes and towhich it is keyed fast, for imparting motion to the circularfeeding-disk through an intermediate cogwheel, S.

F' is a concave circular feeding-plate or revolving disk for conveyingthe type to the tingers between segment-guides G G and a rim, M, formingthe segment-gutter. This platexis cast concave or dish-shaped on top andconvex on the bottom, with a vertical axle, I2, extending down from thecenter thereof, having shoulders formed on it, in the manner above'described for the axle I, which turns upon the horizontal side or faceof the hanging frame Z", being held to its bearing by suitable boxes andhaving a spur-wheel, T, of the same diameter as wheel R aforesaid, keyedto it and geared with wheel It by an intermediate cog-wheel, S, turningon an axle or stud, U, xed in an arm projecting horizontally from thehanging frame Z. On the under side of the feed-plate, near the outeredge of the same, are cast as many projections, and at equal distancesapart, as there are fingers, of a length nearly equal to the spacebetween the feed-plate and bedplate. Into each one, near their lowerends, is inserted a radial pin, o, for striking against curved hangingarms of vibrating shafts of a stop and gate, designed to hold and stopthe type and prevent more than one from entering between the cutters ata time.

M is a segment rim or curb encircling about two-thirds of thecircumference of the feedingplate and rising above its outer edge abouta quarter of an inch to form the outer side of a Y segment of a circulargutter through which the type are conveyed to the cutters, and by whichthe type are prevented from falling from the revolving feeding-plate,which forms the bottom of' said segment circular gutter. Thissegment-curb nearly touches the circumference of the feeding-plate andis supported in its required position by means of perpendicularstandards b', screwed to it, havin horizontal feet or flanges fastenedto the top of the bed-plate by screws. The inner side of the aforesaidfeeding-trough or segment-gutter is formed by two segment-plates, G G',suspended over the rim of the circular feedingplate by means ofright-angled plates a and screws, the vertical limbs of said platesbeing screwed to the outside of the curb M aforesaid and the horizontallimbs having oblong mortises a2, through which screws Z are passed, thatare screwed into said segment-plates G G', the oblong mortises beingdesigned for the purpose of allowing said segment-plates to be broughtnearer to or removed farther from the inner side of the curb M in orderto increase or diminish the width of the segment feedinggutter,according to the size ot the type that are to be conveyed through thesame by the circular revolving feeding-plate F aforesaid.

O is an adjustable gate for preventing the type entering the feed-gutteredgewise and for turning vthem off to the left when they approach theentrance on their edges, so that they may be turned down on their datsides in order to enter the trough endwise and flatwise, which is theonly position they can enter the gutter when said gate is properlyadjusted.

This gate is a right-angled plate with a rounded point attached to aright-angled mortised plate, O2, by a screw, 3, said plate O2 being alsofastened to the innersuspended segment-plate G by a screw, 4, andmortise, by which the gate O can be adjusted horizontally. (See Figs. l,11, and l2.) The screw 3, inserted into the gate Oand oblong mortise inthe plate O2, is for adjusting the gate vertically. It is adjusted andfastened above the feed-plateadis-- tance equal to the thickness of thetype to be dressed. y

1 d'l is a suspended guard placed in the gutter for the purpose ofguarding against the danger arising from the type riding over each otherin their movement round in the gutter, being suspended at a suitabledistance from the revolving feed-plate by a screw, 5, inserted into anoblong mortise in the knee K4, fastened to the inner segment-plate G',by which it can be raised or lowered at pleasure. (See Figs. l, 11, and13.) This guard should be so adjusted by the screw 5 and the oblongmortise in the right-angled knee-plate that its under surface should besuspended above the surface of the revolving feed-plate (which forms thebottom of' the gutter) a distance equal to the thickness of the type, sothat should the type turn on its edge in the gutter after it shall havepassed the gate O' it must be arrested by the guard d' until it beturned down upon its flat side. It performs this oiiicein addition tothat of preventing one type riding over another.

q is another guard-plate near the discharge end of the gutter, designedto accomplish the same object as the one just described. It isahorizontal plate secured to the segment bar or guide Gl by a screw, Z',which passes through a mortise in the plate, and by which it isadjusted. This plate overlaps the segmental channel, and thus reducesthe depth of the gutter to the thickness of the type, and therebyprevents the passage of the type edgewise. (See Figs. l, l1, and 14.)

L is the striking-plate for striking off` the pile of type placed uponthe revolving feeding-plate in order to prevent the type coming incontact with the revolving fingers, thelower edge of said striking-platebeing made convex and arranged below the under side or face ot thefingers. The outer end ofthe plate is fastened to an upright plate, L2,screwed to the bed-plate A, and its inner end'is attached by screws to avertical flange, G3, of the inner segment-plate G', forming part of saidplate G.

J is a vibrating stop (see Figs. 3 and 4) for holding back the charge oftype in the segment-gutter, so as to prevent more than one type passinginto the space between the stop and gate. This stop is a thin plate ofcaststeel having a convex heel, J, which lits into the gutter andpresses upon the t-ype to hold it fast till raised by one of the radialpins o o of the feed-wheel F aforesaid. The said steel plate is'screwedto the enlargede end of a rockshaft, J, which turns in boxes in the topof a cast iron standard, B2, by means of' a screw, J2, which allows itto be removed for the substitution of other stops Aor plates to suitvarious kinds of types. The endJ of the plate J attached to therock-shaft is held down upon the type by the action ofa spring, K2,attached to the standard B2, bearing against the curved arm J4 of therock-shaft. lt is raised at intervals by the radial pins ooaforesaid,which, as the feed-wheel revolves` strike against the back ofthe curved arm J, causing it to vibrate and contract the spring and liftthe stop J and remain in contact therewith, keeping the stop elevateduntil the type are moved round in the gutter and strike the gate H, whenthe pin leaves said curved arm and the spring K2 drives it down, andwith it the stop J, which strikes upon the second` t-ype from the gate,leaving the first type,or that which is next the gate. at liberty topass the gate, (when that is is lifted,) which takes place immediatelyupon the descent of the stop J by the radial pin o coming in contactwith the curved arm H of the rock-shaft H2 ot`tl1egateH,which ismade,arranged, and operated in precisely the same manner as the rock-shaft J,arm J,and spring K2 of the stop J, as aforesaid, the feed-wheel F,revolving without cessation, carrying the said type round to the frontof the cutters B C,where it is met by one of the revolving iingers N,which turns horizontally over the rim of the feed-wheel F and carries itofi from the feedwheel between the cutters, where the roughnesses areremoved therefrom, and, continuing to move round in the arc of a circle,bringing the type between the blank places of the cutter-blocks, whereit is rubbed smooth,

and, the finger continuing to move round in the same direction,the typeis carried offat the 'ends of the cutter-blocks and falls down upon theinclined trough, which conveys it to a proper receiver placed below thebed-plate. The gear of the machine may be so adjusted that the gateshall commence to rise to let a type pass through when the finger is ona Straight line passing through the center of the linger andfeed-plates, or nearly so, both gate and finger moving simultaneously,the former rising vertically in the arcof a circle to let the type passthrough and the latter moving round horizontally in the arc of a circleand taking hold of the type just as it arrives opposite the ends of thecutters, between which it is carried flatwise and sidewise, the gatefalling as soon as the type is carried beyond it and just before thetnger touches it by the radial pin o passing from beneath the back ofthe curved arm H of the vibrating shaft H2 and the action of the springagainst the front of the curved arm. The front end of the upper cutter,lbeing made slightly flaring or open,

,will admit the type to pass in between the upper and lower cuttersfreely and be carried over the furrows obliquely without turning overupon the edge, the cutters being held stationary by the aforesaidscrews, as seen in Fig. 10.

The spout A2,v for conducting the type to the receiver, is inserted intoan opening in the bed-plate below the rear ends ot' the cutter-blocks,and is screwed to the bed-plate. It is covered with paper or other softmaterial to prevent the type from becoming bruised or otherwise injuredin falling from the cutters down upon the spout.

- The dotted lines l2 (see Fig. 1l) indicate the position the type willassume beneath the end of the box of the upper cutter the moment theradial finger N strikes it to carry it between the cutters, and thedotted lines 13 show the position of the opening in the bedplate A, intowhich the conducting spout A2 is inserted for conveying the type to thereceiver as they fall from the cutters after being properly dressed.

The gearing may be made and arranged in.

the manner described and represented, or in any convenient way, and thepropelling power may be manual, horse, steam, 85e., applied to the shaftin any manner preferred.

The machine being put in motion, the type to be rubbed and smoothed areput upon the concave revolving feed-plate near the center,

kto which they have a tendency to descend on account of its dish shape.The plate L strikes the type on top and prevents them from rising abovethe level of the fingers N. The feedplate conveys them around inconcentric circles to the entrance of the gutter, where they entersingly, flatwise and lengthwise, being prevented from entering in anyother way by the guide or guard o' at the entrance, which is set forthat purpose. When they arrive at the gate H, they are arrested, and nomore can enter until the type that entered first shall have passed thegate. rIhe feedplate, which forms the bottom of the gutter, continuingto revolve, causes the typeto strike the end of the last type thatentered the gutter, or that which remains under the guide or guard o',and be turned off toward the center of the plate. The stoppage ofthe-advance of the type toward the revolving fingers and cutters is butmomentary. The stop J and gate H being caused to rise and fallalternately in quick succession by the radial pins o o and springs-K2 K5in the manner above described, the type are carried forward singly tothe revolving ngers and cutters, where the operation of removing theroughnesses from their flat sides and smoothing them takes place, asabove described. The type then descend upon the inclined spout A2 to thereceiver, there being a constant supply of typekept upon the concavefeed-plate and a continuous row in the segment-gutter,prevented fromriding over 'cach other by the guard d2, arranged above them.

I do not claim rubbing and smoothing type by machinery, as this has beendone by means ofa combination of inclined vibratory feeding-troughs andreciprocating slidecutters and other modes; but

What I do claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

l. My peculiar mode ofrubbing and smoothing type by means of thecombination of the stationary adjustable cutters B C, revolvingfeed-plate F, rotary fingers N, segment-guides M G, forming the curvedgutter-guards o d'l q, vibratory stop J, and gate H, constructed,arranged, and operated substantially as set forth. n

2. Operating the stop and gate alternately by the combination of theradial pins o, projecting from the feed-plate F, and curved arms H J4,attached to the vibrating shafts of the stop and gate, and springs K2K5, bearing against the arms, substantially as set forth.

JAMES L. DUNCAN.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM P. ELLIOT, A. E. H. JoHNsoN.

